Govt proposes extending UCT protections to insurance
The Government is proposing to extend the unfair contract term (UCT) protections to insurance contracts, says Minister for Revenue and Financial Services, Kelly O’Dwyer.
In its Proposals Paper, the Government has set out a model for extending the UCT protections, which ensures that consumers and small businesses who purchase insurance are provided with the same protections available to other financial products and services.
Under the Australian Securities and Investments Act, a term is considered unfair if:
- It would cause significant imbalance in the parties’ rights and obligations; and
- Is not reasonably necessary in order to protect the legitimate interests of the party who would be advantaged by the term; and
- Would cause detriment to a party if it were to be applied or relied on.
The proposed model would amend section 15 of the Insurance Contracts Act to allow these UCT laws to apply to both general and life insurance contracts and would tailor the UCT laws to accommodate specific features of those contracts.
AUTHOR
Anastasia Santoreneos
Recommended for you
As the 1 January 2026 education deadline looms, the FAAA is predicting as many as 1,000 advisers could exit the profession, triggering a significant experience loss for the profession.
AMP has made an internal promotion to head of business development for wealth distribution, as chief executive Alexis George has said the firm is doubling down on its BDM team.
A Supreme Court of Western Australia jury has issued its verdict regarding unregistered MIS operator Chris Marco, who was on trial for 43 fraud charges, with ASIC stating the verdict ends a “sorry chapter”.
Investment Trends has revealed Australian advisers are increasingly turning to ETFs to provide portfolio diversification, while new inflows for unlisted managed accounts have seen a double-digit drop.
